Dear
by Kusanagi Hikari
Summary: They say opposites attract. And it couldn't be more true for the relationship between popular and decently behaved Cloud, and the outcast gangster Leon.
1. It's all about rumors

**DEAR**  
>Story by Kusanagi Hikari<br>Beta-ed by HannahDJA

Summary: They say opposites attract. And it couldn't be more true for the relationship between popular and decently behaved Cloud, and the outcast gangster Leon.

* * *

><p>It was rumored that Squall Leonhart was a really scary guy. There was evidence supporting it too; every glare he threw at someone was enough to send shivers down their spine, if his angry face didn't. If looks actually could kill, said glared at people were probably dead. There's also the fact that a student had seen Leon take down one whole biker gang. By himself! That was enough proof that Leon wasn't just scary, he was straight out dangerous.<p>

It was rumored that Squall Leonhart was a very malicious person, but only because of the things that were going around about some helpless stray cat that he'd taken into his home to torture. There was no proof of that though, it was just another rumor. People were just gullible these days. Another reason for why he was malicious was because he did not stand for people to mock or make fun of him. There was no mercy for anyone who spoke out against him and his ways.

It was rumored that Squall Leonhart has a heart made of stone, as evidence: no one, and really, NO ONE, had seen him smile or cry. EVER. Rumor has it, that when Leon was 12, his mother passed away. And he didn't shed a single tear, or express grief. Or any emotion for that matter.

But of course, it's ALL just RUMORS. None of it was true…

And as a result of all those rumors, up till now, no one dared to speak to Leon except if there was something REALLY necessary to discuss. Because of his harsh nature, he didn't have any friends. Not even one. Until now. Sort of.

Leon had never cared about having a friend though. He never wanted to receive any attention or care from anyone if he didn't think of them as a close friend. He always thought it was better being alone and doing everything alone since there would be absolutely no one to disturb you. Well, not like there's anyone who dared to disturb him anyway, since Leon's glare of death managed to scare any potential disturbers away.

In a life as harsh as Leon's, there was little to be excited about. But ever since his previous locker broke, and he transferred to a different one, something new had presented itself. Apparently, he had gotten an angel of a neighbor. An angel that was actually in the same class as his. (Why hadn't he noticed this before?)

The first time Leon had been captivated by Cloud was when the blonde actually gave him a sincere (not forget to mention very beautiful) smile to him the first day Leon moved to his new locker. "Hello there Leon, I didn't expect you to be moving in. I guess we're neighbors now." It was what the blonde had said to him that day with that dazzling smile that managed to make Leon's jaw drop to the floor in awe. But of course he wouldn't show the blonde how captivated he really was. His face remained jaded. Calm as the sea on a hot day.

Since that day, Leon knew that he'd fallen in love at first sight.

Leon had been secretly trying to get to know Cloud better. He'd secretly stalked Cloud twice just so he could know where the boy lived and what kind of house he had. He also knew that Cloud had a black dog named Vincent.

Cloud was the total opposite of him. He had many friends, he was very diligent, smart, very kind and polite, and he was also girl-magnet because of his adorable looks. Though, Leon had noticed that Cloud seemed to be attracting more boys than girls. But despite all of that, Cloud never seemed to take interest in his fawning fans. The reason… Leon wasn't so sure and he wasn't exactly interested in finding out why.

Leon and Cloud were complete opposites. If you made a chart and compared their features and interests, Cloud was a freaking angel, and Leon might as well have been considered satanic in some principles.

No matter how much Leon wished for Cloud to be his, and only his, surely it would never happen.

And now, his dream had come true. His heart was pounding frantically against his ribcage, skipping beats.

There, standing right in front of him where they were on the school's rooftop, was Cloud, with his blue eyes gazing uncertainly and shyly at Leon's gray ones. Busy hands at the ends of his uniform, Cloud took a deep, nervous breath, and Lean tried to focus on what Cloud had just confessed. He attempted to make sure he didn't stare too intently on the blonde as to keep him from getting too uncomfortable, and wondered if Cloud knew just how adorable he was when he was nervous, the way his eyes held Leon's shyly, and his kissable lips would almost pout.

When Cloud had opened his mouth to speak, Leon thought he had never heard a voice as soothing as Cloud's, and in his trance, it took him quite a while to actually register that the cutest guy in the history of mankind was talking to him.

"Err… sorry, could you repeat that?"

The blond teenager looked anxiously at him, his brows knitted in frustration. Hands gripping fistfuls of his uniform.

"I… I said that… I-I… I lo-love you!"

Leon blinked. He felt as if his jaw hit the floor hard, but of course he didn't show it. If he showed any reaction at all, it would be his mouth parting slightly, but his face remained exactly the same otherwise.

Leon feared that there was something wrong with his hearing but, did he… did he just hear Cloud say that he loves HIM? HIM! The most fearful guy in the school! HIM of ALL people!

To think that there was actually someone who actually likes him, most of all, that person is Cloud Strife! The very first boy that Leon had ever had a crush on in his life!

Leon could die happy now.

"Le-Leon…?" Cloud asked in a voice that was laced with both nervousness and sweetness. It only registered a second later in Leon's mind that Cloud was gazing at him with timidness, fear, embarrassment, yet he was hopeful at the same time. Right now, Leon wasn't really sure what to do. What could he do now? He liked Cloud a lot. Should he make a move? Like kiss him? Hug him? Or say that he also likes him?

But Leon didn't know how to do it. Because Squall Leonhart didn't do sappy things like that.

"So… so… wi-will you… be my… my…" Leon watched as Cloud struggled to say the words, stumbling over those kissable lips. He had guessed what Cloud might say, but he stayed silent, he wanted to hear it from the boy's own mouth.

"Will you please be my boyfriend?"

Oh, how happy Leon was to hear it. Despite how impassive Leon was on the outside, on the inside he was doing back flips and screaming hallelujah at the top of his lungs.

Leon though, still remained silent as he wasn't sure what to do. He was happy, really really happy, but unfortunately Cloud took Leon's silence as disapproval and he thought that the way Leon's mouth parted slightly was the man actually being disgusted at his confession.

Leon felt panic overcome him when Cloud looked like he was about to cry.

"I…I'm… I'm sorry… I didn't… I didn't mean to… disgust you or... or something."

Leon cursed inside his mind. Shit! Wonderful Leon! Just wonderful! The person that you have a crush on has just confessed to you, but what did you do? Nothing! You did nothing and gave him the wrong impression and break his heart! Stupid Leon!

"I…" Leon watched as Cloud bit his lower lip, and he felt his heart break when Cloud wiped tears that brimmed in his eyes with the back of his hand. "I…I'm really sorry. Please… fo-forget what I just said…"

Inside, Leon was practically screaming in panic. He needed to do something before Cloud began to walk away!

The moment Cloud took a step to turn away from him, Leon quickly grabbed the blonde's wrist, making the boy turn to looked back at him in surprise. Leon promptly felt his heart skip when he saw the hopeful and expectant look in Cloud's eyes.

Calmly, Leon spoke.

"You want to go out with me?" Okay. That sounds fine. Okay, yeah, he can do this.

Both Cloud's eyes and mouth were wide open in surprise and this was the first time Leon had ever seen Cloud looking so comical. Everything Cloud did still captivated him. To Leon, Cloud was radiant as ever, and always would be.

Leon took Cloud's reaction as a good sign to continue, and just a bit, he tightened his hold on Cloud, hoping that he wouldn't scare the boy away.

"I don't mind. I'll go out with you."

Cloud's eyes widened even more, but it was nothing compared to Leon's mental scream. It was a loud and piercing cry. But like always, he didn't show any of it, he remained jaded as usual. To be honest, Leon was close to a mental breakdown with the way he was wording things. He was an absolute sap all of a sudden, and he felt like he would die if Cloud just kept staring at him.

Cloud might have been thinking that Leon only accepted his offer because of a pity or guilt trip. With that in mind, Cloud wouldn't realize or even have a clue that Leon actually liked him a lot. _Ugh! Damn it! Why are you so damn bad at this Leon? _He mentally kicked himself.

Silence.

More silence.

Then somewhere, a girl squealed before the door to the rooftop was slammed open and a screaming girl with short raven hair ran over to Cloud, hugged him tightly, then promptly, to Leon and Cloud's amazement, lifted him off the ground and spun him in circles.

"Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! You did it, Cloud! You did it!"

"Y-Yuffie! Stop that!" Cloud wailed, and Leon suddenly wanted to rip Cloud from this girls arms to save him from his friend.

Thankfully, someone did it for him and Leon saw a man with spiky black hair yank the girl away from Cloud. He glared at the girl. "Yuffie! You shouldn't have interrupted them!" the guy said. The boy was familiar, and when Leon thought about it, he'd noticed that this guy had been around Cloud a lot. And around school a lot in general. As he recalled… the guys name was… Zack?

"Awwww! But I couldn't help it! I'm just sooooo damn happy for Cloud!" Yuffie pouted and crossed her arms.

"Now now, Yuffie. That's just plain rude." They looked over to the door again hearing a girl voice, and a girl with a long, brown ponytail hair stepped to the rooftop. Leon remembered this girl as one of Cloud's friend. Air? No, wait. It's Aerith. Yeah, Leon was sure her name was Aerith.

"What are you guys doing here?" Cloud asked his friends. Face flushed, his eyebrows twitched and lips unconsciously formed into a small pout when he put both his hands on his waist. Leon wondered whether the blonde had any idea just how adorable he looked all the time.

"Well, we were kind of worried about you… so we came to check up on you." Zack replied, rubbing the back of his head, and smiling nervously.

"You mean eavesdropping on me!"

"Hey Cloudster~ We're just worried about you~" Yuffie defended.

"We're sorry Cloud. But we were really just worried about you." Aerith smiled sweetly at the blond, and Cloud couldn't help but feel guilty for judging his friends, especially when they had good intentions in mind.

"Really…?" Cloud tilted his head, earning a nod from the other three. "Why?"

"Well, we're kind of worried that Mr.-killer-tough-guy over there might hurt you." Zack pointed at Leon, who sent him a death glare. If looks could kill…

Cloud looked confused, "Why? Leon's a nice person…"

Hearing that, Leon shot the blonde a look of shock. He was glad Cloud's friends were more preoccupied with the blonde than with his own expression of surprise. No one had ever seen an emotion on his face other than anger and… well, death. No one, and absolutely no one, had ever commented on him being a… nice person.

Aerith giggled. "Oh Cloud, you're so naïve…"

Yuffie sighed and shook her head, "Whether he's just really ignorant to the rumors or really naïve, we'll never know…"

Leon wasn't actually paying attention to what Cloud's friend were saying, not when his heart was once again was captured by Cloud's undivided kindness. And when Cloud noticed that Leon was staring at him, the boy blushed and shyly smiled at him, making Leon mentally melt down from that amazingly radiant smile.

He was snapped out of his trance though, when someone tapped his shoulder and he saw Zack standing right in front of him, one hand resting against his waist. "I've got something to ask you, and you're going to answer it honestly. Promise?"

Leon blinked at first, then nodded his head.

"Good, now, tell me. Did you really mean it when you said that you're going to go out with Cloud?"

Leon raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't bother to go out with him if I didn't mean what I said."

The transformation that took place on Cloud's face was amazing, and it was something Leon would never forget for as long as he lived. It was as though those few simple words were a caressing and soothing breeze, carrying away the anxiety, the apprehension and the fear like leaves in the wind. A smile blossomed on his face, belief and happiness filling his eyes, and the already radiant smile become even brighter.

Zack stared at Leon for a while, and Leon stared back. He's not one to show his feeling through words, so hopefully Zack would be able to see that he meant what he said earlier from his looks. When Zack finally broke into a grin, Leon knew that he had successfully conveyed his messages.

"Good!" Zack smack his shoulder. "You better take good care of him! You don't want to end up being killed by Cloud's guardian now, do you?"

_Guardian?_ Leon asked to himself.

"Don't worry, Riku and Roxas will understand." Cloud said, earning a look of understanding from Leon.

_Ah, yes. The over-protective friends._ Leon thought. He remembered the over-protective Riku, the one that was dating Sora, and Roxas, who was dating Axel. They were other, currently not present, friends of Cloud's who had a brother named Reno. They were the over-protective hens of Cloud's life, and if Cloud didn't have a mother, they would have gladly taken over such a role. He remembered coming across the story of Roxas and Riku having nearly killed a student who'd 'accidentally' touched the blonde's ass. He didn't want to tango with them, especially because they would see him as a threat.

"I don't know Cloud~ You know how Riku and Roxas are…" Yuffie said, placing both of her hands at the back of her head.

"Well, it doesn't matter now." Aerith said next, turning to look at Leon before she looked at Cloud. "As long as they're happy now."

Cloud smiled at his best friend, "Thanks, Aerith."

"Well then, we're going to leave you love-birds alone." Zack grinned and wink at both Cloud and Leon. Leon mentally blushed, unlike Cloud who clearly and freely showed how embarrassed he was.

"See you Coudster~ Leonnie~" Yuffie chirped, then dashed off the rooftop when Leon glared at her at the awful nickname.

Both Aerith and Zack followed the raven girl, and soon, Leon and Cloud were left alone.

Silence.

More silence.

Then, Cloud decided to speak up. "So… we're going out, right?" he asked shyly and nervously, as if trying to convince himself that this wasn't a dream.

Leon wanted to hug Cloud, kiss him, and say how he'd always liked him since the first time he'd seen the blonde. He couldn't believe that all of this was happening. If felt so much like a dream, and Cloud actually liked him back! They were going out too! It was real… really real. Cloud really liked him, and they were really dating!

Dear Shiva! Leon was so happy that he nearly did a dance! Once again, of course, Leon is Leon. And Leon never shows any actual emotion.

So to answer Cloud's question, Leon just simply nodded.

Leon was kind of worried that Cloud might actually be disappointed by his lack of response. But a bright smile appeared on the blonde's face. Cloud looked so… content.

Then without warning, Leon felt a smaller, soother hand slide into his own. His heart sped up double time, and he looked at Cloud. He was standing next to him, with the largest smile Leon had ever seen splitting his face in two.

Leon really thought he might go blind from that smile.

"Leon… I, I just wanted you to know that I—" Cloud lifted his gaze to meet Leon's, eyes burning with determination to say what he wanted to say. Leon, as usual, remained silent. "—I just wanted you to know how happy I am right now."

At that, Leon's heart exploded in happily, little fireworks.

"I…" unconsciously, his mouth opened, earning an expectant look from Cloud.

What was he going to say? Guh! Stupid mouth! Don't open your mouth when you don't even know what you're going to say in the first place! But… Cloud was being so honest, and Leon felt like it wouldn't be fair if he didn't say something that would actually make Cloud convinced that Leon liked him back. And the expectant look on Cloud's face… there's just no way that he could turn back and make his now-already-boyfriend disappointed.

"I… feel the same."

Leon mentally screamed in embarrassment. For the first time! SQUALL LEONHART! The MOST FEARFUL student in Radiant High School actually said something as corny as that! It's history! It might be even possible to put it into one of the worlds seven wonders...

Leon couldn't believe that he had said something like that. He swore that he was blushing, even if it was just a faint blush on his pale face, BUT IT'S STILL A BLUSH! AND OMG! SQUALL LEONHART DID NOT BLUSH!

But the look he got from Cloud was worth it. The boy's face was bright red, eyes wide in shock before his expression turned into a happy one. A smile blossomed on his face, belief and happiness filling his eyes, and he squeezed Leon's hand again. Then, barely seconds later, Cloud pressed his body against Leon's, putting both of his hands to Leon's chest before he rested his head on his shoulder, the brunet was frozen in place.

Leon nearly fainted, his jaw dropped and his eyes widened with shock. Cloud was hugging him, for God Sakes! CLOUD WAS HUGGING HIM!

"Thank you Leon…" Cloud murmured, snuggling closer to Leon with a content smile on his face.

Leon looked down at Cloud's blonde hair. Why was the boy thanking him? He'd done nothing…

Unless… Cloud was thanking him for actually liking him back? For making him happy?

Somehow… that warmed Leon's heart.

Leon's eyes were soft, calm, loving, and accepting. Nervous even. But Leon didn't care even though his eyes were showing many kinds of emotion, it's not like Cloud could see them anyway. With that look never leaving his face, Leon hesitantly buried his face in Cloud's blond hair, taking a deep breath as if trying to reassure himself that all of this was real.

Even if Leon didn't return Cloud's hug, Cloud did not waver. He remained content in Leon's arms.

Because he had a feeling that this was Leon's way for saying 'you're welcome'.

* * *

><p>By the time Leon and Cloud entered the classroom, they immediately caught sight of a teasing look from Yuffie, Zack, and Aerith, while Riku immediately glared at Leon when he caught sight of him entering the class together with Cloud.<p>

Leon saw that Riku was about to get to his feet, but the teacher entered the room, and slammed his books on the front desk to get the attention of the students. The teenagers all slunk back to their seats, Leon and Cloud doing the same. Though, when Leon was about to sit in his seat, beside his always nervous chairmate (he was probably totally terrified of Leon), someone suddenly grabbed the back of his uniform, and he stumbled. He turned around in a fury, but the anger disappeared when he found it was Yuffie, grinning at him. "Where do you think you're going?"

Leon arched an eyebrow, "My seat."

Yuffie laugh, "Oh, yeah forgot to tell you. But from now on, you're going to change seats with me."

Leon was silent for a while. _Wait… Yuffie is Cloud's chair mate, that means, if I change seats with her…_

Leon turned to look at Cloud who sat by the window with an empty chair next to him. Noticing that Leon was looking at him, the blonde gave Leon a warm smile, nearly giving Leon a heart attack.

"The hell! Yuffie!" Both Yuffie and Leon to where Riku, throwing death glares at both of them. "What the fuck are you doing?"

"Riku, language." Aerith scolded.

Riku winced a bit before glaring back at Yuffie, who jumped in surprise at such an awful face, and Leon just yawned in boredom.

"Changing my seat with Leon?" Yuffie said innocently.

"I know that you little—"

"Ah ah, Riku. Remember, language." Aerith warned him, and Zack muffled laughter with his hand when he saw the defeated look on Riku's face.

"Alright, Aerith. Just… let me finish, okay?" Riku sighed before regained his composure and scowled sharply at Leon. "What I'm trying to say is, why did you change with him of all people?"

"Well…"

"You know that I hate it when someone like him gets near Cloud."

This time, Leon couldn't help but glare back at Riku. He made it sound like Leon would hurt Cloud by being near him. _Just who the hell you think you are, huh pretty boy? I know that you're Cloud's best friend. But you know what? I'M Cloud's boyfriend. I would NEVER hurt him. Even if wasn't my boyfriend!_ Leon screamed in his mind.

The teacher, Cid Highwind, just continued to stare at the drama in front of him. He didn't make any move to stop them, he'd miss something if he did. So he continued to watch, arms crossed in front of his chest and a smoke between his lips.

Leon was already irritated, and he was ready to break something if it weren't for Cloud walking over him and placing a hand on the brunet's arm.

Leon turned back to look at Cloud, eyes immediately softening at the sight of his boyfriend. Riku just stared in shock at Cloud. A sudden wave of whispers and faces full of shock from the other students who were confused by what was going on.. Probably because they were surprised that the popular and innocently naïve Cloud Strife was able to touch the fearful Squall Leonhart so calmly.

Cloud focused his gaze on Riku, lips almost pouting in annoyance. "Riku, stop being mean to Leon."

Riku blinked, "B-But Cloud! What if—"

"Don't worry Riku. Leon won't do anything to me." Cloud smiled sweetly before he directed that smile to Leon, "Right?"

Leon, who was still captivated by Cloud's sweetness, was only able to nod.

Cloud grinned wider, then looked backed at Riku, "Besides…."

And suddenly, everyone turned in their seats with baited breaths, wondering what Cloud was going to say. Zack, Yuffie and Aerith, however, were all smiling knowingly. Everyone's jaws slackened when Cloud moved his hand on Leon's arm down to the brunet's fingers, and they were even more surprised when Leon let him. Any jaws that had remained shut earlier fell completely and some started to fall off their chairs when Cloud reached out his other hand and wrapped it around Leon's arm, hugging it.

The brunet could only blink in disbelief, a shroud of surrealism overwhelming his mind as he felt his hand being held by the one person he'd never thought he'd never thought would hold it. In reality, Leon had been sure that popular people like Cloud would never be so... nice, or sweet, to someone like him, an outcast who was feared by all and loved by none.

And then, Cloud dropped the bomb.

"Besides…. We're dating now."

The silence was like the room was empty.

And then, Riku screamed.

It was like his screame broke the barrier, and suddenly, all the girls were either screaming, squealing or wailing in tears. The boys started to cheer and whoop (though a lot were crying as well), but none were as loud or thrilled as Zack and Yuffie. Aerith was giggling insanely as she quickly snapped a few pictures with her cell phone.

Cid grinned. Maybe he should ask Aerith for a few pictures. Just for memories.

* * *

><p>So, how do you think of the first chapter?^^ Do you like it? Would you like me to continue?<br>Please review and tell me what you think, oh, and SOFT critic are welcome, just so that I can improve my writing

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR MY DEAR BETA HANNAH! XD


	2. For you, I'll do anything

**DEAR**  
>Story by Kusanagi Hikari<br>Beta-ed by HannahDJA

Summary: They say opposites attract. And it couldn't be more true for the relationship between popular and decently behaved Cloud, and the outcast gangster Leon.

* * *

><p>Class had started calmly after the disruption, just as Leon wanted, but the attention he received from the other students was less than desirable. Almost all of the students kept glancing at Leon and Cloud who sat next to each other, giving them envious, confused, and curious looks when turned his back to write on the whiteboard. Leon wasn't used being stared and he tried not to be bothered and remain calm. Though, he found it hard to ignore his classmates when every single one was staring at him, some even glaring<p>

When Leon glanced at Riku, he could see just how sharp the glare Riku threw at him was. Flame was burning in his eyes. Leon just narrowed his eyes at him, then glanced to his right where his… boyfriend (Leon still found it hard to believe that Cloud was his boyfriend) was writing down what wrote on the whiteboard.

Leon felt how his heart began to beat faster at the sight of Cloud and he turned his attention back to . Leon tried to focus on his teacher, but he realized that was going to be impossible. He could faintly pick up on Cloud's scent, a clean, fresh, pleasant smell that screamed 'smell me and touch me'. Leon's heart skipped a beat at the dirty thoughts that entered his mind and he scolded himself for them. He tried to keep himself from stealing glances at the blonde throughout class, but only to recognized himself doing it when Cloud caught him.

When their eyes met, Leon felt as if he was caught, the type of feeling that was kind of like a lion sneaking up on a herd of unsuspecting gazelle, and being caught by them. He was worried that Cloud would think more of the glances and staring than was actually meant by them, (though he would admit to himself that he was a pervert when it came to Cloud). But then Cloud smiled at him, so purely beautiful that Leon felt as if he was in heaven.

"Is something wrong, Leon?" Cloud asked, and he felt how his heart began to beat more promptly when Cloud leaned closer to him, with a smile still adorning those beautiful lips.

Leon shook his head, mentally embarrassed that he was caught looking at Cloud. "Nothing."

"Are you sure? Because I don't think there'd be a reason to stare if there wasn't something wrong."

_Well, that's because you're being so damn cute. _

"Ah." Cloud said suddenly. "I know, you forgot to bring your textbook, and you want to ask me to share mine. But you're too shy to ask, that's why you're just staring at me." He grinned, proud as if his assumption was correct. "Right?"

Leon stared at his new boyfriend with a steady gaze, though inside he was in awe for how cute and naive Cloud was. Seriously, did Cloud really not notice that he was so cute, people practically drooled over him? (At least, that's what happened to Leon...) But then again, this is Cloud we're talking about. He can just be… slow at things sometimes.

Leon just nodded his head, though he'd actually brought his textbook with him, it's just that he'd forgotten to take it out, probably because he'd been too happy to remember. Beside, sharing a textbook with Cloud meant that he could be closer to Cloud since both of them had to lean toward the textbook in order to be able to read it clearly, and that meant their faces would be closer. Leon mentally screamed at the thought.

Cloud pushed his textbook to the middle of their tables before sending a blazing a smile to Leon, who went temporarily blind from it. Leon could hear whispers and felt many eyes on them, he could see Aerith, Zack, and Yuffie's teasing look, and the one that felt especially piercing and burning was thrown by Riku, who looked as if he was going to eat Leon alive if he tried anything.

Leon paid no attention to them though, since his attention belonged to Cloud who leaned closely to him. And he could smell Cloud even more. But as always, if one were to see his face, dead to any emotion, no one would have been able to tell just happy he was right now.

He could still hear a few whispers wash over the class, probably talking about them, though Leon was too busy with Cloud to notice.

He did notice, however, when Mr. Highwind's eyes fell onto him. He crossed his armst, giving him and Cloud both a pointed look. "Leon, answer the question I just asked."

There was a question? If there had been one, Leon hadn't been listening. He remained seated and said coolly, "I don't know."

frowned, glaring at Leon. "I think the class and myself would appreciate if you would use more time paying attention to the lesson, and less time staring at Strife."

Leon just narrowed his eyes. It wasn't his fault, seriously. Cloud was just so damn cute.

"And did you forget to bring your textbook?"

Leon glared at Mr. Highwind. Seriously, the guy bitched way too much.

Leon was about to retort with 'So what?' when Cloud suddenly put up his hand, all eyes settling on him, including Leon.

Mr. Highwind raised an eyebrow, "What is it Strife?"

Cloud spoke with sheepish smile, "I'm sorry Mr. Highwind. I'm the one who forgot to bring my textbook."

Leon choked, he didn't have the time to protest when Cloud silenced him with a sudden hand on his. It was hidden from the other students, as Leon's hand was on his lap, and the table hid them. There was a wave of whispers and veiled giggles washed over the class, but it was quickly stomped out when Mr. Highwind clear his throat, a warning they all knew as the unspoken 'be quiet.'

"Really? That's very unusual of you Strife." Mr. Highwind raised an eyebrow and shook his head, "Whatever. It doesn't even matter. Let's just continue the lesson."

Mr. Highwind continued on with the lesson and Leon turned to stare at Cloud with his mouth open slightly. All eyes of the class were on them, but he was too preoccupied with the smile on the blonde's face.

Cloud was taking the blame for him. Now, just how sweet was that?

Leon felt a little bad though because Cloud was getting scolded for his mistake. He wanted to apologize, but he doesn't really know how to start…

"Why did you do that?" he said in a voice that could only be heard by the two of them. _Maybe that was a good start._ He thought to himself.

Leon watched Cloud turn to look at him at the sudden question, fluttering those long eyelashes as the look on his face change into an expression of coyness, all made perfect by the faint blush and the small smile blossoming on his face.

"Because I love you."

Leon nearly squealed. A VERY faint blush showed on his cheeks and he looked away, trying to hide the embarrassment and inner turmoil that mixed on his face. Looking upon him, he looked calm for the most part, but he just couldn't stop his heart from beating as fast as it was. It felt like his heart was about to burst from his chest with each painful pound..

Leon decided not to say anything back, because he honestly don't know what to say toward the matter. But unfortunately, Cloud took his silence as a bad sign as the boy was glancing at him worriedly, leaning closer to take a good look at Leon's face a bit better. "Are you mad at me Leon?"

Leon looked at Cloud. _What? Of course not, honey. How could I ever be mad at you? I would never be mad at you, sweetheart. _He thought, but no one would know what he was actually thinking.

"No." He answered simply, letting his gaze softening when a hint of relief showed on Cloud's face. "Why would you think that?"

"Well… I just thought that maybe you were mad at me for taking the blame like I did..." Cloud answered timidly.

Leon stared at Cloud with disbelief. Seriously, how nice could Cloud be?

"I'm not mad."

Cloud smiled widely in relief, "Really? That's good."

Leon watched as Cloud gave him one last smile before turn his attention to Mr. Highwind's lesson. Leon let his gaze remain on Cloud though. To think that someone as nice as Cloud want to go out with someone like him… it really was a miracle. Cloud was being so nice to him, and yet he didn't utter a single word of gratitude to the blonde. Now that just wasn't fair, isn't it?

"…Cloud?" He called out for his boyfriend. _Oh my God, I love saying that name._

Cloud turned to look at him with. "Yes?"

Leon stared at him for a second before he led his gaze somewhere else. "Thanks, for earlier."

_YES! You did it Leon! You said it!_ Leon mentally cheered. It was a bit embarrassing, but the smile that split Cloud's face was worth it all.

Leon never knew just how easily happy he could be just knowing that Cloud was smiling because of him.

* * *

><p>It was lunchtime when Mr. Highwind's lesson had finished and Leon was thankful, fearing that he would die of boredom if he'd stayed in Highwind's class any longer. The one thing he loved about lunchtime was the seclusion. He would be able to grab a quick sandwich and a drink and enjoy them on the school rooftop. It's not that he disliked the cafeteria, but it was too noisy, and he liked being alone.<p>

Ah, but he had Cloud now, so maybe he didn't have to eat alone. Or maybe he would still eat alone, since Cloud always ate at the cafeteria with his friends. But it was a different matter if Cloud asked him to eat together, even in the cafeteria. He would oblige to any of Cloud's requests.

And his wish came true when Cloud stood up abruptly from his chair, giving him a wide grin before asking, "Leon, let's eat together at the cafeteria~"

Leon simply nodded before he got up from his own chair. He was about to move toward the blonde, when an arm hooked with his, making his eyes widen. He knew it was Cloud's arm, it was the only arm that would dare to come near him.

Leon looked down to his side, eyes meeting with Cloud's blue ones and the blonde smiled shyly at him with faint blush adorning his cheeks. "You don't mind, right?"

Leon shook his head since he was too stunned at the moment. Of course not, why would he mind? You'd have to be insane to care if someone like Cloud wanted to be close to you. And Leon knew for a fact that he was not insane. He hoped...

"Great! Let's go then, the others must be already waiting in the cafeteria."

For the rest of their walk to the cafeteria, everyone that passed them gave both of them a shocked looks, probably wondering why the dangerous Squall Leonhart and the innocent Cloud Strife had linked arms. Everyone (especially the boys) continued to give the brunette horribly envious glares, curious as to how the scary-as-shit loner had managed to capture the blonde's heart. Some were brave enough to give him the evil eye, but they were quickly scared off when Leon noticed them glowering at them and immediately returned their glares ten-fold. It was as though there was a murderous aura surrounding Leon, and they could just feel it in their bones when he sent it out to touch them. They shuddered.

Then there were also the ones who practically swooned and sighed over the latest development, happy that the cute little prince of Radiant High had hooked up with a stud (though Leon was scary, many people still thought that he was very stunning in looks) like Leon. It only meant more eye-candy for them, since it would effectively bring the brunette into the limelight.

It was a mess, but Leon wasn't really bothered by it, because the only thing that mattered right now was the fact that he and Cloud were an item. And a valuable item at that. Every time Leon turned to Cloud, the blonde would gave him a soft endearing smile, and Leon found himself always captivated by it. To be honest, Leon wanted to kiss him, wanted to hug him, wanted to hold Cloud's hand like the blonde held his, but he found himself unable to do that. The old part of him wouldn't let him. Why? He didn't really know. Maybe it was because he was destined to remain the cold, dangerous Squall Leonhart.

"Hey, Spiky!" Hearing the familiar voice, both Leon and Cloud turned to look for the source, and as Leon had figured, the one who was calling for his boyfriend was Zack. He was already seated at a table along with Cloud's other friends.

Cloud waved at Zack, turning to look at Leon with a smile, "Come on, let's go over there."

To be honest, Leon was worried that he might be intruding. Even if it seemed like Zack, Yuffie, and Aerith weren't bothered by his presence, he still didn't like being surrounded by other people very much. The way the other students were staring and fawning over them from afar wasn't helping either.

But if it was for Cloud, he would give up anything, including his privacy. That's why Leon let himself be pulled by Cloud toward Zack and the others. As Cloud sat down, Leon immediately sat next to him and felt his heart almost jump out of his ribcage when he felt Cloud inch closer to him, making Leon pick up on Cloud's pleasant, natural scent.

Yuffie made a wolf-whistle sound, "Wow~ ain't you lovey-dovey?" she spoke with a grin, and Cloud blushed. Zack grin hugely while Aerith just giggled. Leon wanted to die of embarrassment.

"Our relationship is only two and a half hours old. Forgive us for wanting to be lovey-dovey." Cloud stuck his tongue out childishly, and at the sight it made Leon smile inside.

"Awe come on Spiky~ no sulking. It's just that you two look so…." Zack trailed off, searching for the right word.

"Adorable, and happy." Aerith finished.

"Yeah, that's what I meant." Zack winked at Aerith in agreement.

Leon raised an eyebrow. He was happy alright, but adorable? Him? No way. Nu-uh. Squall Leonhart is not adorable. Cloud Strife is the one who was adorable.

"I'm happy with Leon." Hearing the soft, shy, yet honest statement that slipped out of Cloud's lips make Leon turn his head to the blonde beside him. And as if noticing his gaze, Cloud immediately looked back at him, smiling tenderly.

Leon was still baffled that Cloud wanted to be his boyfriend. But Leon was worried about whether or not Cloud was really happy being with him. The brunette wasn't good at relationships, he didn't speak much, he would never make the first move, he couldn't hold hands, and not to mention that he didn't smile a lot, or show his emotions.

_Can I really make him happy?_ Leon thought solemnly.

He was so busy worrying that he didn't notice the bursts of wild brown hair until it was too late. Before he could register what was happening, he heard Cloud squeak when his arms were shoved full of a bundle of hyperactive energy, hugging him and squealing in excitement.

"Oh my God, Cloud! You did it! I can't believe that you're finally dating Leon now! I'm so happy for you! I wanted to look for you two this morning before classes started, but I just couldn't find you! But now that I have, you absolutely have to tell me the details! Oh, you must be so happy now!"

Leon stared at the spiky brown haired boy who was hugging Cloud like crazy. The brunette was throwing glares at the boy who still hugging Cloud tightly and talking their ears off. If this kid wasn't going to get off Cloud, he was going to rip him off himself. But someone did it before him.

"Hey, Sora, you might want to stop flirting with Cloud. That is, if you don't want to be murdered." Everyone turned their attention to the red head with gravity-defying hair who stood in front of their table.

Hearing that, Sora quickly let go of Cloud with wide eyes before he turned to Leon, "Oh shit, Leon I'm sorry! I didn't mean to! I already have Riku! I swear I didn't want to do anything with Cloud! He's cute alright, I know, but he's like my brother or something!"

Everyone (except for Leon) at the table laughed at Sora's frantic rambling, while Leon stared at the boy incredulously. The kid really didn't know when to stop.

Cloud put a hand on Sora's shoulder, "Relax, Sora. Leon wouldn't hurt you. Axel's just joking."

"Really? I'm still going to live?"

Cloud laughed. "Of course. What makes you think that you won't?" Sora didn't reply, looking away sheepishly.

"By the way, where's Roxas and Riku? You two are usually always with them." Aerith asked.

Axel sighed at that, "Ah, well, those two were plotting something when they learned about Cloud and Leon hooking up," he turned to Leon. "You better prepare yourself for when you see them next."

Leon almost smirked. _Hah, bring it on. I'll face anything for Cloud._

"Riku and Roxas really opposed the idea of you two dating." Yuffie sighed, shaking her head.

Cloud frowned, "But why? Don't they understand that I really like Leon very much?" he said almost with a sad tone, and Leon promptly felt his heart being to beat hard from that statement. It was nice hearing that, especially coming from Cloud. It convinced him that he really was with Cloud.

"Oh, it's not like that Cloud, of course they understand that you like Leon," Sora said, patting Cloud's head while flashing a wide grin at Leon.

"They're just worried about you." Axel smiled, settling beside Zack. "And overprotective."

"But why? I'm not a kid."

"Yeah, you're not. But you're our baby." Zack grinned at the now pouting Cloud.

"They did it because they love you, Cloud. We all love you." Aerith smiled warmly at the blonde. Leon felt his heart warm a bit, knowing that Cloud's friends all love him so dearly. He'd never known how it felt to be loved (aside from family). But he knew that Cloud loved him, and it felt so nice and natural. And because he loved Cloud, he finally understood the protective feelings that people had for one another.

As if Zack could read his mind, the raven spoke, "Besides, Leon's probably overprotective towards you as well. Right Leon?"

Obviously surprised by the question, Leon didn't answer at first when he noticed that all eyes were on him. But when he caught Cloud's curious gaze at him, he replied, much to his embarrassment, with a VERY faint blush coloring his cheeks, "Yeah."

Cloud was blushing. BLUSHING! OMG! And his face was near Leon's. The brunette averted his eyes to something else besides the adorable blonde beside him. that Leon have to avert his gaze somewhere else at the cutie beside him. Looking at Cloud's blushing face for too long might make him do something not entirely pure…

"Leon…" the soft call of his name made Leon turn to look back at Cloud who's was still watching him with… Leon didn't really know what he saw in Cloud's eyes, but it sent a very fuzzy and warm feeling to his heart.

Cloud was smiling coyly, and the expression brightened when he saw the soft look in Leon's eyes.

Leon didn't know how long they stared into each other eyes like that, the only thing that made him snap out of his daze was the loud sound of something… something like… the sound of a clicking camera?

Turning around, he noticed the girl that was taking pictures of them, while the blonde hair guy was scribbling something in a notebook, and the other guy with orange hair just stared at them with a grin.

Leon's eyes widened slightly when he recognized them. The newspaper club!

"SELPHIE! TIDUS! WAKKA!" Cloud squealed, blushing furiously. He was gripping Leon's arm and leaned his face closer to the brunette's chest, as if trying to hide his embarrassment,

The girl, Selphie, shoved her camera into Wakka and told him to keep on taking pictures of Leon and Cloud's before she spoke very loudly. "Today, we gathered here in the school cafeteria to witness the blissful union of these two blessed young men, Squall Leonhart and Cloud Strife. I now pronounce you, boyfriend, and boyfriend! It is such a miracle that this man, the dangerous loner, Squall Leonhart was able to capture the heart of our famous Radiant High prince!"

And then suddenly, Tidus wailed. "Oh Cloud~ Why? Why did you have to date someone else? Don't you know how many heartbroken men and women there will be now that you're dating?"

Selphie kicked him, "Oh shut up, Tidus! They're just perfect together! We, fangirls will support their relationship until the very end! Those who call themselves fangirls of Leon-x-Cloud, cheer loudly!" Selphie cheered happily, being joined by other girls in the cafeteria. But none were as loud as Yuffie and Aerith, as they waved their arms and screamed.

"Hey, just because I'm a big fan of Cloud, doesn't mean that I won't support his relationship with Leon." Tidus defended, then he shouted. "Show those fangirls that we, fanboys, will not lose to them! Long live Leon and Cloud!"

"Long live Leon and Cloud!" a large amount of the boys in cafeteria cheered loudly, the remaining men not putting much enthusiasm into their cheers. Zack, Axel and Sora stood on the table dancing a crazy little ditty.

Leon stared at his surroundings. _Are they crazy? That's it. Everyone in Radiant High is insane, aren't they?_

Through all of the commotion, Leon was able hear Cloud's voice calling for him. "Leon, I'm sorry…"

Leon raised an eyebrow. For what?

Cloud was blushing furiously. "You know… this." He motioned to the students around them, cheering like crazed maniacs.

Leon stared at Cloud with amusement. Damn, Cloud was just... so cute blushing like that. "It's fine. I know you're very popular."

"But… it's kind of nice that there's a lot of people that supporting our relationship, right?" Cloud smiled.

_Relationship…_ Leon mentally smiled at that thought and nodded.

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!"

The loud demanding sound silenced the hectic cafeteria and everyone turned to the two students that marched their way into the room and stood in front of Cloud and his friends' table.

Leon narrowed his eyes. _Here they come._

Riku and Roxas stood in front of the table, ignoring the disapproving looks they received from Cloud's friends. Roxas pointed at the brunette. "You. Squal Leonhart."

Leon just slightly raised an eyebrow.

"How dare you seduce our beloved baby-boy! Just who the hell do you think you are?"

_And just who the hell do you think you are? __I didn't seduce him! To be honest he approached me..._

Riku scoffed. "You think you're so great aren't you? Just because you get the approval of other people 'cause Cloud loves you? Well you know what? We don't approve of you! You don't deserve Cloud and we think he deserves someone better than you! Someone that can show him what real love is!"

Cloud and his friends, as well as Selphie, Tidus and Wakka gasped loudly. Wakka snapped some pictures despite a few angry looks from Selphie.

That set ablaze a fury inside Leon and he glared at them both. But he couldn't deny the sneaking feeling that Riku and Roxas might have been right. Cloud did deserve someone better... than him...

Cloud stood abruptly. All eyes turned to him curiously as the blonde took a few steps forward, eyes never leaving Riku and Roxas.

"Why did you guys say that? You are so rude! I thought you guys understood how I felt about Leon." Cloud scolded (gently, mind you) both Riku and Roxas.

Leon watched as Riku and Roxas' faces took on expressions of shock. Leon pursed his lips at the idea that Cloud had amazing effects on people.

"O-of course not, Cloud! We both understand! It's just that we don't trust that he can make you happy!" Roxas attempted to make the blonde understand.

"But… But I'm happy! It's making me happy that he wants to date me. It's more than enough for me." Cloud said back, obviously wanting to convince Riku and Roxas. Seeing Cloud defend him like that, made Leon feel… loved.

"We know Cloud. But we want to make sure that he's worthy of you." Riku said firmly, trying his best to ignore and not give into the pleading look Cloud sent him.

"But… But… Leon, he…" Cloud stuttered, confused. What else could he say to make Riku and Roxas believe in him? Seeing Cloud's distressed look, Leon couldn't take it anymore. He stood up from were he was, gaining the attention of those around them and he stood at Cloud's side.

"How about a challenge then?" he suggested, and Riku raised an eyebrow.

"Challenge?"

"Yeah, a running challenge. The rules are simple, the loser has to obey the winners wishes." Leon said, shoving his hands into his pockets coolly. "Deal?"

Riku and Roxas looked at each other, grinning from ear to ear before turning to look at Leon. "Deal."

Roxas nodded, "If we win, we want you to stay away from Cloud."

Everyone in the room gasped, and Leon felt as if he were in one of those dramatic sitcom TV shows. The students held their breaths, wondering what Leon would say to that, or even accept the challenge now that the guidelines were set, because if he lost, he would lose Cloud.

Much to everyone's shock, Leon nodded confidently. "Deal."

"And if I win…" Leon continued, "You'll leave our relationship alone, and never bother us in that regard anymore. Deal?"

Hearing that, Selphie screamed, followed by Yuffie, then Aerith's and then Zack's, before a few other people started to scream as well. The students were screaming for Riku and Roxas to accept Leon's terms, and Selphie couldn't stop herself from acting as reporter for what had just happened. You could say it was in her blood.

"Everyone. As you can see, our biggest, and best scary gangster, Squall Leonhart has challenged his boyfriend's guardians, Riku and Roxas. Leon has accepted that if he loses, he'll lose Cloud. Now it's up to Roxas and Riku to decide upon Leon's terms!" Selphie spoke, though it was more to herself, as no one was really paying attention to her.

Riku and Roxas stayed silent for a while, obviously a bit reluctant to agree to Leon's offer. But Riku knew that both he and Roxas were probably two of the best runners in Radiant High, so he was confident that they would win.

"Fine, Deal."

Everyone cheered, with Zack and Sora shouting that Leon would win for sure.

"Alright then. We'll wait for you at the track field." Riku and Roxas said. They marched from the cafeteria, followed by most of the students that were chattering about how they couldn't wait for the competition to begin.

Once the room was (almost) empty, Zack, Yuffie, Aerith, Sora, and Axel immediately walked to Cloud and Leon. "Yo, Leon. You sure about that?" Axel asked, frowning.

Leon nodded with certainty. "Why not?"

"Don't you know? Riku and Roxas are really fast runners!" Yuffie squeaked.

Hearing that, Leon smirked. "We'll see about that."

"You sound so... confident." Sora said, "That's a good thing. But…"

"But if you lose… You'll have to stay away from Cloud, Leon." Aerith spoke sadly, she couldn't bear it when one of her friends became sad. She didn't want any of them sad, especially Cloud. "Are you sure about this?"

Leon turned to look at Cloud, who was gazing back at him sadly. He could see fear in Cloud's eyes, and his heart pounded harshly in his chest.

Was Cloud scared that they would have to break up?

Leon couldn't help but let his gaze soften. He lifted a hand to touch Cloud's cheek (which was amazingly smooth), and he noticed the faint blush that sprung up on the blonde's skin.

"I won't lose. I promise." _There's no way I'm going to give up on you, Cloud._

"Leon…" Cloud said softly, gazing into Leon's eyes before he let a smile form on his lips. "I believe in you."

Leon wanted to smile. That was what he needed from Cloud right now.

* * *

><p>Everyone stared at Leon, Riku, and Roxas. They stood in the track field, stretching out their muscles for the run that was about to take place. Leon was quite uncomfortable being stared at like he was, but knowing that Cloud was watching made him feel all the more confident that he would win.<p>

Leon looked over to the crowd, seeing that everyone was cheering. He could see Zack and Yuffie jumping up and down, cheering for him, along with Aerith, Axel, and Sora. But what made it all worthwhile, when he saw the bright, glowing smile that clearly screamed, 'I believe in you!'

The brunette massaged his shoulder. He would win this challenge for sure. For Cloud.

"Better say goodbye to Cloud after this Leonhart." Riku smirked at him.

Leon paid no attention to him and let his face remain jaded, though on the inside he was laughing like a hyena. _How smug. We'll see about that._

"Alright everyone, the match between Squall Leonhart and The R Brothers is about to start. The bet? Our famous, super adorable little blonde prince, Cloud Strife!" Selphie cheered, joined by everyone. Zack and Axel whistled happily, making Cloud blush a bit while saying 'I'm not adorable'.

"Who's going to win Cloud Strife? Is it going to be Squall Leonhart, the one that everyone fears the most but can be surprisingly tamed easily by our little prince? Or is it going to be the little prince's guardians, who have been protecting Cloud Strife from the molestations of others? Are you guys curious as to who's going to be the winner?"

"YES!" Everyone screamed.

"Alright then. Are you three ready?" Selphie shouted at the three of them.

Roxas gave her the thumbs up, and Riku gave her a wink, while Leon simply nodded.

Selphie grinned, "Alright then. Ready!"

Leon turned his gaze in front of him.

"Set…!"

Riku and Roxas took a ready position, while Leon just stood coolly.

"GO!"

Once Selphie gave the signal, both Riku and Roxas immediately took off and everyone began to cheer loudly, but the happiness started to die when they noticed Leon remained at the start line, and only whispers could be heard from the crowd.

"Why the hell is Leonhart still there?"

"Why isn't he running?"

"Did he really want to give up on Strife? Did he do it on purpose?"

At the last sentence, Cloud's eyes widened in shock and horror as he watched Leon still remained still.

"_I won't lose. I promise."_

Leon… Leon wouldn't lie to him, right?

Cloud's eyes started to water.

Zack, who'd noticed Cloud's distress, turned to shout at the brunette. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING LEON?"

Leon turned to look at Zack when he heard the shouting, but what made his eyes widen was the look on Cloud's face. He didn't miss the look of horror and sadness on that amazing face and the tears that welled up in the eyes he loved so much.

Dammit.

Riku and Roxas were close to the finish line, and at that moment Leon took off. Everyone was taken aback by the speed Leon had seemed to gain instantly. Leon was able to pick up an incredible speed in no time and was starting to gain ground on Riku and Roxas. Everyone was impressed with Leon's speed as they watch him race towards Riku and Roxas.

It wasn't long before Leon had out run the other two and was bolting for the finish. It took a few minutes for everyone to recover from his sudden burst of speed, but they all raised their arms and started to cheer. When he passed the finish, he made a bee-line for Cloud.

"Cloud…" Leon spoke, slightly out of breath. He stared at Cloud who had tears in his eyes and Leon felt himself starting to freak out when Cloud remain silent. Had he hurt Cloud by standing still like he had earlier? Great Leonhart. You did it again. Thanks to you he's crying. Really great. Leon was so busy blaming himself, he didn't notice Cloud's approach. Only when the blonde wrapped his arms around the brunette did he notice Cloud, and he looked into his teary blue eyes.

"I… I thought that you'd given up on me…" Cloud whispered into his chest, "I… I…"

Leon didn't know what to do. It broke his heart seeing Cloud crying like this, and it hurt him even more knowing that Cloud was crying because of him.

So in return, Leon did the only thing he could do right now.

He wrapped his arms around Cloud's waist, ignoring the expressions of disbelief and jealousy that he received from other people as he whispered, "Sorry..."

Cloud shook his head, "No. I'm sorry… For thinking like that…"

_Geez, Cloud. You're way too nice…_ Leon thought.

"Leon!" Zack shouted, running toward where Leon and Cloud were with Yuffie, Aerith, Axel, and Sora following close behind him.

"Wow! Leon! That was awesome!" Yuffie squealed.

"Yeah! I can't believe how fast you are!" Sora grinned.

"You know…" Zack said, rubbing the back of his head, "For a sec I thought I was gonna have to kill you when I saw you just standing there. So thanks for not giving up on our little prince here."

Leon scoffed as he let Cloud pull away from him. "I already promised…"

Zack grinned, "Yeah."

"Hey, Roxy! Riku! Come over here!" Axel shouted toward his boyfriend and the silver haired boy. They were out of breath, and they grumbled as they walked over to them, not enjoying the glow of defeat.

Selphie cheered, "Then it's settled, the winner of this match is…. SQUALL LEONHART!" She shouted loudly, jumping up and down in victory with everyone cheering loudly for Leon and Cloud. Some students were whispering that Leon could be so sweet, and some were giving both of them congratulations.

Roxas glared at Leon, "Just because you won, doesn't mean that we won't keep an eye on you Leonhart."

Axel sighed, walking over to his boyfriend and slung an arm around the boy's shoulder. "Oh, come on Roxy~ Don't be so stubborn."

"I don't trust that he'll take care of Cloud like he says he will," Riku grumbled, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"But Riku~ you saw how willing Leon was to take the challenge for Cloud. He was prepared to lose to you in order for the chance to be with Cloud peacefully. Don't that show just how much he cares for Cloud?" Sora whined, a bit frustrated with how stubborn his boyfriend could be when it came to Cloud.

"But—!"

"Riku, Roxas." Cloud called and walked to them. "If you don't trust Leon, then at least trust me, I can assure you that Leon won't do anything to hurt me."

"But- But- Cloud!" Roxas whailed.

"Please?" the blonde gave them a pleading look. "Can you please just be happy, for me? Please?"

Riku and Roxas groaned, looking at each other before they sighed in union. How could they refuse, when Cloud was pleading and staring at them like he was?

"….Fine…" Riku mumbled, and as soon the word escaped his lips, everyone began to cheer again. But no one was as loud and as jubilant as Yuffie, Zack, Aerith, Axel, and Sora. Leon raised an eyebrow, wondering if his effort really had been worth how easily Roxas and Riku had given up. Cloud did have a way with his friends though.

Cloud grinned widely, so wide and happy that Leon felt his own lips twitch in wanting at the sight. His boyfriend was hugging both Riku and Roxas tightly, showering them with a thousand thanks before turn to him. Leon just stared at Cloud, watching the blonde smiling softly at him before running and giving him a tight hug.

"Thank you Leon." Cloud murmured, looking up at him. "I'm really happy…"

Leon just nodded, though he was smiling like crazy on the inside and hugging him in return. His hands ran down his new boyfriends back in soothing caresses. Cloud blush and duck his head, snuggling deeper into Leon's embrace.

Everyone cheered louder, with Axel and Zack laughing at them, shouting that they should just get married right away. Or at least get a room.

Leon wanted to cry out with joy.

* * *

><p>The news of their relationship was almost completely all over the school by now, and Leon could righteously blame Selphie and the others for it. Every time the brunette was accompanied with Cloud and walked down the schools hallways, there was a never ending roar of whispers and squeals. At one point, it started to bother him a bit when he caught on that no matter where he went with Cloud, he'd be stared at and talked about. Though, whenever he saw Cloud's beaming face, the problem seemed to melt away.<p>

The bell rang, signaling that it was the end of the day. Leon yawned, he was tired with everything that had happened during the day. First, Cloud confessing to him. The blonde had always been on his mind, and he'd had a crush on him since the second he'd seen the little prince. Second, just like in the dreams he'd had, he was actually dating Cloud! Third, he was the hot topic of the school today, and probably would remain the hot topic throughout the school for some time. And fourth, everyone of Cloud's overprotective friends would be watching him like hawk for as long as they were together.

Leon sighed, things had just happened too fast today. Gosh, he was dead tired.

"Leon, are you alright?"

Leon turned to looked at his boyfriend (Yes, HIS) who was peering at him worriedly.

"Yeah…"

"You sure? You look tired…"

"I'm fine." Leon said firmly, just to reassure Cloud. The blonde could be so nice, he didn't want Cloud to worry over something so small.

Cloud smiled, "Then, how about we go home now?"

Leon nodded, he almost let out a shriek of surprise when he felt a hand clasp his shoulder. He turned around, glaring at whoever it was, only to be surprised a little further when he found a sheepish Zack smiling at them.

"Say, you two going to go home together?"

Cloud nodded, smiling (why did he always have a smile?) "Yeah, how about we all go home together?" Leon was (a bit) disappointed that he wouldn't be going home with just Cloud. But his hope and joy returned when Zack shook his head. "Nah, we don't want to disturb your first time going home together."

Cloud blushed, glancing at Leon before blushing even harder and looking away. "Oh, o-okay…"

Leon mentally screamed. _GAH! Cloud! Why the hell that you have to be so adorable?_

"WHAT? WE WON'T BE GOING HOME TOGETHER WITH CLOUD?" Jumping, they looked over to where Riku stood abruptly from a chair.

"Zack! You know that we can't do that! We can't leave Cloud unguarded!" Riku shouted, definitely refusing the idea of not going home with Cloud like they used to do.

Leon raised an eyebrow. Unguarded? Now what was that supposed to mean?

"Oh come on, Riku. I'm sure Leon can guard Cloud by himself. He beat you guys after all," Yuffie spoke up.

Leon looked over to Yuffie. _What?_

"But, but- No, I'm sure Roxas won't agree with this at ALL. I'm okay with them being together, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to let Cloud go home just being guarded by one person!"

Leon raised an eyebrow to Riku. _Why does he talk as if someone is after Cloud's life or something?_

Zack and Yuffie sighed loudly, while Aerith giggled as the two dragged Riku from the classroom.

Aerith walked over to Cloud and Leon's desks, smiling. "Riku and Roxas can be such mother hens sometimes."

_Yeah, no kidding._ Leon agreed.

"We're going to let you guys go home now. But Leon, please watch over Cloud on his way home, okay?" Aerith gave him a wink before she walked out of the class as well.

Leon blinked. Now he was really confused.

"Shall we go home now?" Cloud spoke softly.

Leon turned his attention to Cloud. He wanted to ask Cloud what his friends meant by the protecting thing, but judging from the innocent smile on the blonde's face, Leon had a feeling that Cloud didn't have a clue either.

Guess he'd find out later.

* * *

><p>Hey!^^ Sorry for the long wait for this chapter. So, what do you think about this chapter? Like it? Don't like it? Still want me to continue? Well, please review and tell me what you think, oh, and SOFT critic are welcome, just so that I can improve my writing<p>

And I would like to thank you for those who gave me those amazing reviews, it was such a big motivate for me^^ So… yeah, thanks a lot

Special thanks for my dear beta **HannahDJA**! Thanks a lot girl^^

ooOO Teaser for Chapter 3 OOoo

In which Leon finally understand why Cloud's friend told him to guard the blonde, Leon began to realize just how NAÏVE Cloud can be, Leon came over to Cloud's house and met another one of Cloud's guardian, namely Vincent, Cloud's pet.


	3. I'm possessive, so what?

Hello there everyone, sorry for the long wait. Well, at least I continued this story right^^?

I would like to thank you for those who've been giving me reviews. It's nice knowing what people think of this story, and I couldn't be more happy knowing people enjoy reading this^^. Some people gave me advices, and I really appreciate it, because I think that would improve my writing

Anyway, you guys are awesome! *hugs* keep it up and more chapter will come! XD

Well, enjoy this chapter!

* * *

><p><strong>DEAR<strong>  
>By Kusanagi Hikari<br>Beta-ed by Hannah DJA

This wasn't happening, Leon thought. He scowled, running a hand through his chestnut hair. Now he understood why he'd been told to make sure Cloud was protected, but this was just... horrifying.

Glaring dangerously at the approaching man, he snarled when the man reached out to touch his boyfriend and grabbed the strangers hand harshly.

"What the hell do you want?" Leon said in threatening tone, eyes glaring and motioning silently at the man to back off before he get hurt.

Leon held back the urge to smirk when he saw the man's face pale at his threat and quickly apologized before walking away from them. Leon sighed heavily. They were now waiting for the train, and Leon was taken aback that in the moment they'd appeared at the station, many eyes were trained on them. More on Cloud actually, Leon thought.

Leon knew how attractive his boyfriend was, so when he noticed the few people staring at the blonde, he had no choice but to shrug it off and figure that it wasn't uncommon for the boy. But to think that someone had dared to touch him with Leon standing right there... he scowled again. It was beginning to irritate him.

Two man had tried to molest Cloud, and when Leon finally managed to shoo them away, others came to make the same attempt. No wonder why Roxas and Riku were being so over-protective toward Cloud. He understood their feeling now.

"You ok?" Leon turned to his boyfriend, and was very surprised when Cloud gave him a look as if he had just asked something totally ridiculous. His suspicions were right when Cloud laughed and gave him a funny expression.

"Of course I'm alright, Leon. Why wouldn't I be?" Cloud was saying it without any hesitation at all and this time Leon arched an eyebrow, gazing curiously at his boyfriend. He knew that Cloud was a naïve yet charming person, but Cloud couldn't be THAT naïve in this kind of situation right? Then again, this was Cloud we're talking about.

"Cloud." Leon called out, earning the blondes attention. "Does this happen often?"

Cloud blinked. "Does what happen often?"

"You know… with those men trying to touch you…. inappropriately."

Cloud blinked again. "Touching me... inappropriately?"

The blonde was a total air head! Leon sighed. "Like what that man did to you earlier."

Leon had seen it coming when Cloud blinked once more in confusion. "Wha—what? But, they just touched my shoulder and arm."

Yeah, as if that's all they were trying to do. Leon was more than glad that those hands hadn't gone any further, or he might have killed them. "Touching someone like that when you don't even know them is inappropriate. Who knows where they'd have put their hands if I hadn't stopped them."

"Oh…" Cloud was frowning, as if he was thinking of something. "I… have no idea…. So that's why Riku and Roxas always insist to walk me home…"

It was official. Cloud was MORE than just a little naïve.

"Then… then…. What should I do if it happens again?" Cloud asked, gripping at his arm, and Leon found that his boyfriend looked very endearing staring at him with those clear blue eyes like that.

Leon released a breath. He then looked at Cloud, placing a hand on top of the blonde's silky hair. "I won't let it happen."

Hearing that, Leon nearly choked on his own words. To think that he had said something like that without any difficulties was beyond what he'd thought he'd been capable of. Though he enjoyed the blush coloring Cloud's cheeks with a shy smile on his face.

"Really?" Cloud was leaning closer to him and Leon found himself backing away far enough so their faces weren't close. God knows what would happen…

"Hmmm, are you by any chance… jealous, Leon?" Cloud mumbled then tilted his head to the side. (Oh God…)

Leon was surprised by the sudden question, but hell yeah, he was jealous. He hated it whenever someone tried to touch Cloud like that. Cloud was his dammit. Even Leon had never touched Cloud like that in public. They hugged, that's true, but it was always Cloud who made the first move. Leon still couldn't bring himself to touch Cloud like that. He wasn't very sure why though.

"And what if I am?" Leon raised an eyebrow, though he used a gentle tone so the boy wouldn't take it wrongly.

Cloud grinned widely at him, and Leon almost faltered when a pair of slim arms circled around his neck. His face was so close to Leon's that the brunette could feel the blonde's breath against his cheeks. This time, Leon failed to hide the blush on his face. Yes you heard me right! Squall "Ice Prince" Leonhart was blushing!

"Then I'm happy," Cloud was smiling so sweetly at him but also almost shyly that you could see the pink coloring his cheeks. "Because it means you're being possessive."

Then almost too soon, the warmth around his neck was gone and Leon could only blink at the sight of Cloud giggling at him, almost unable to stop. "Oh God, Leon. You're so adorable. I never thought that I would be able to see you blushing like that."

Leon glared (half-heartedly) at his boyfriend. Was Cloud teasing him? Oh, so Cloud thought that he's adorable when he's blushing? Thanks but no thanks, Squall Leonhart is not adorable. Cloud needed to know that he himself was the one who was really adorable when blushing. Ok. It's payback time.

The brunette held out his hand and grabbed Cloud's chin, bringing his face closer to him that their lips almost brushing against each other. Leon almost smirked when he saw Cloud's widened eyes, a very bright blush covering his face. The blonde was… so… so cute! Damn it! To be honest, Leon wouldn't have minded lowering his head a few inches so he could feel Cloud's lips touch against his kiss. But he was afraid that Cloud wouldn't want that, after all, today was the first day they'd been dating, and a kiss on first day? And in public? That was a bit dangerous.

For a few seconds they only stood against each other, until Leon finally broke the close proximity and shoved his hands into his pockets. He mentally did a small dance of victory when he saw the bright blush on his boyfriend's face, just like he wanted.

"Now who's the one looking adorable?" Leon said, almost smugly. He raised an eyebrow in amusement when he saw, if it's even possible, Cloud blush even harder.

Leon kept on staring at Cloud, who kept on playing with the hem of his uniform, as if trying disappear from Leon's presence. It seemed that the blonde was having a hard time looking at him after what happened.

Then, Cloud finally dared himself to looked at him, but those blue eyes immediately shifted their gaze to somewhere else again upon seeing the grey eyes staring at him. The brunette began to worry that his actions might have upset Cloud. But when he heard what Cloud said, he knew that there was nothing to worry about.

"I… I thought you're… going to… kiss me…"

The way that sentence had been said held a hint of surprise yet disappointment, and Leon couldn't help but sigh in amusement. If Cloud wanted him to kiss him, then he would kiss the blonde whenever he wanted. But he wants their first kiss to be special and in a more proper place, not in public where they stood in the station like this. That's so not romantic.

People might not have believed it, but Leon can be a bit romantic when he really wanted to. Holding each other in public was romantic in his eyes, because it showed they belonged to each other, and there was nothing Leon wanted more then that.

Leon walked to his little boyfriend who looked up upon sensing his presence, watching in contentment as those blue eyes widened in surprise and happiness when Leon took a smaller hand into his.

Cloud stared at Leon. "…Leon?"

"Let's go." The brunette said calmly despite the fact that he was going nuts on the inside. To be honest, he was a bit embarrassed doing this because he had never done any sort of thing like it before, especially when it came to making the first move. But this would be the easier way to show that Cloud was his, that Cloud was his boyfriend.

Besides, Leon was more than happy holding Cloud like this. And from the way Cloud's hand tighten a bit around his own, he knew that Cloud was also more than content being held like this. That's what mattered, right?

* * *

><p>Along the ride on the train, Leon stood right by Cloud's side, glaring at those who tried to get close to Cloud in an inappropriate way while he kept his hand and Cloud's entwined. He wanted to shout 'Hey, this cute little blonde here is mine, so back off, fuckers!' to all of those perverts or even put a name tag on his boyfriend with 'Property of Squall Leonhart, touch and you'll die' written on it. But that was definitely not his style of claiming possession. So Leon choose his own, by giving all of them death glares. That should be enough of a warning.<p>

Much to his excitement and happiness, Cloud was acting as if he liked Leon's action by sometimes looking at the brunette and sending a very beautiful smile to him, Cloud had even taken a step closer to Leon and put that blonde head on Leon's shoulder. Now, just how beautiful is that? If Leon brought a camera, he would've taken a picture of them.

When they had finally arrived at their station, Leon stuck to Cloud, following the blonde's every step. But then when the blonde told him that he wanted to go the bathroom, Leon had made a move to follow him when Cloud looked at him sternly (with a blush) and had told him to just wait outside. Leon was a bit reluctant, because you know, the bathroom was the most perfect place to molest someone. But after Cloud promised that he would scream for Leon if something happened, Leon finally let him go.

After that, they walked to Cloud's home.

"Well, this is my house." Cloud smiled as he pointed at the building in front of them. Leon only nodded. He had stalked Cloud twice to his house, remember? He wouldn't say that though.

Leon watched as Cloud walked ahead of him while he just stood there, waiting patiently as Cloud looked for the key to his house inside the bag. Once had it, he turned to the brunette with a shy smile. Leon waited, watching his boyfriend as the blonde struggled to speak.

"So… I…. Uhh…" Cloud was biting his lower lip, a gesture that Leon knew as the blonde being nervous about something. But now he knew that when there was a blush on his cheeks, and his hands played at the hem of his shirt, it had something to do with Leon himself.

"Do you…" Leon watched as Cloud turned his blue eyes to him for a brief moment before continuing, "Do you want to come inside?"

Now that was not what Leon had expected.

Leon cleared his throat trying to hide the blush that threatened to escape, and rubbed the back of his neck. It's not like he didn't want to. Oh no, to be honest, he was more than happy to come inside, but… he didn't trust himself. The possibilities of what he was capable of doing to Cloud when they were alone together... oh, those possibilities were endless.

"Just… for a cup of tea or coffee?" Leon turned to look at Cloud again, and couldn't help but be amused at the hopeful look in the boy's eyes.

"…Alright." Leon said after a moment of hesitation. He just hoped that he won't do anything to the blonde…

Cloud's face immediately brightened at the approval. Leon felt like he almost (ALMOST) smiled when his boyfriend grabbed his hand and pull him to the front of door.

"My mom's out for work, so…. There's no one in the house right now." The blonde said, he unlocked the door. "Except for Vincent."

"Vincent?" Leon raised an eyebrow. Who's that?

Cloud grinned. "My dog."

Oh. Leon nodded. He'd almost forgot that the blonde had a pet. So much for being totally alone together in the house…

As soon as the door swung open and they stepped in, Leon was surprised when the sound of thundering from across the house. It grew louder and louder until a large black hound dog appeared and bounded for them.

"Vincent!" Cloud gave a shout in delight and crouched, opening his arms wide open to welcome his beloved pet. As soon as the dog, Vincent, landed in Cloud's lap, the canine gave Cloud welcoming licks on the face. Cloud could only laugh helplessly. "Vincent! It tickles!"

Despite the protest, Cloud didn't really mind being slobbered by the dog, and giggled while stroking the dogs head. The sight warmed Leon's face, and his features softened. The blonde's laughter was an endearing noise, heavenly, and he never wanted to stop listening. But it made him wonder how a person like Cloud could love Leon the way he did...?

Giving his master one last lick, crimson eyes turned to look at Leon, only noticing now that his master brought company.

"Leon, meet Vincent." Cloud smiled at him as he patted the dog's head again. "Vincent, meet Leon. He's… my boyfriend." The last part was said a bit shyly.

The first thing that Leon saw when he turned to look at Cloud's pet was a pair of bloody eyes staring at him from Cloud's lap. No, staring was too mild a word to describe how Vincent was looking at him.

Vincent was… glaring at him.

Yeah. Vincent was positively glaring at him. In fact, he was glaring so hard that Leon swore he could see flames.

Then, Vincent started to bark.

"Vincent!" Cloud's eyes were wide when he looked at the canine. Vincent immediately quieted at being scolded. "Vincent, why did you do that?"

Vincent whined, but gave Leon another glare, and Leon glared back, before the dog stepped out of Cloud's lap and sat beside his master.

"I'm sorry that he barked at you, Leon." Cloud said, one hand move to pat Vincent's head while the other reached out for Leon's. "Vincent always like that to someone he didn't know. I remember he gave the same treatment to Zack and the others the first time they came over."

Leon nodded. "It's fine." He rubbed the back of his boyfriend's hand with his thumb just to reassure him, and enjoyed the smile appearing on Cloud's face.

Almost too suddenly then, Cloud's hand was snatched away, or more like something had pushed him onto the floor. When he looked up, all he could see was crimson eyes glaring at him, and the darkly colored dog growled. Leon somehow knew what the animal was saying.

'Don't touch my master.'

Leon glared back at Vincent. Yeah, right. Like he would let a dog come between his relationship with Cloud.

"Vincent!" Cloud had taken a higher tone to scold his pet (though to Leon the blonde was still only gently scolding). Vincent flinched, and whined as he leaped off of Leon with his ears down, afraid Cloud was actually mad at him.

As soon as the dog backed off, Leon sat up, groaning a bit. Damn, the dog had jumped on him so suddenly and with so much force, his back actually hurt.

"Leon, are you alright?" Cloud helped him and was watching him with concern.

"Yeah… I'm fine." He said as he gave another glare at Vincent who ignored it, much to his annoyance. If Vincent wasn't Cloud's pet, he would've torn the dog apart.

"I'm sorry Leon…" the guilty tone and the hand running up and down along his arm made Leon turn to look at a distressed Cloud. Leon gave a sigh and patted the blonde's head. "It's okay."

As if his touch would burn Cloud, Vincent immediately barked again. He scowled. The dog really needed to behave before Leon snapped at him.

"Vincent. Hush." Cloud glared at his pet who settle down and whined again. Usually, Cloud would immediately cuddle his pet.. But, nu-uh. Not this time. Vincent had gone a little bit too far. "Stop bothering Leon, Vincent. He's a guest. Mind your manners."

Leon watched in amazement as his boyfriend talked to the canine as if he understood what was being said. Almost confirming Leon's suspicions, the dog turned his head to glare once more, then sauntered off into the living room.

Leon snorted. Another one of Cloud's guardians, and unfortunately, all of them disliked Leon.

Cloud stepped out of his shoes, and led the brunette through the house and into the living room. Two plush loveseats and a long couch surrounded a small coffee table and took up a lot of the space. Mounted on the wall was a sleek, grey television framed by tall surround sound speakers. Newspapers graced the tabletop in a neat stack in the corner and on the other side of the room, away from the noise, was a grand desk where many family pictures and trinkets sat tall and proud for visitors to peer at. "

So, would like a cup of tea or coffee?" Cloud asked.

"Coffee would be nice."

"Alright. Why don't you take a seat on the couch while I'll go make some?" Cloud smiled before disappearing into the kitchen. Leaving Leon alone... and much to his dismay, Vincent chose then to amble heavily into the living room.

Leon decided to ignore the dog and turn to the pictures set on top of the long desk, teasing and luring him to take a look of Cloud childhood life. The first picture he saw was a picture of a toddler Cloud, big blue eyes staring curiously at the camera, looking adorably cute with a thumb inside his mouth while the other hand was holding a chocobo doll closely to his chest. Leon let out the smallest whimper of glee at the adorable sight.

The next picture was one of Cloud that looked a bit older than the previous one. Leon suspected that Cloud was about 7 or so and stared at the picture in contentment at the sight of Cloud smiling widely with a puppy Vincent in his arms. Cloud always looked so adorable smiling.

And the pictures went on showing Cloud. Cloud running around the yard with Vincent, Cloud asleep in the couch, Cloud playing soccer with Zack, Cloud eating watermelon with the gang, and on and on. Leon swore that he could stare at the pictures for hours if he wanted. Just staring at Cloud never bored him.

Leon eyes landed curiously at one of the pictures. It was a picture of Cloud—probably in junior high—with Vincent in his lap. A woman with the same blonde hair and blue eyes like Cloud sat next to his boyfriend, hands folded gracefully on top of her lap. Leon watched in amazement. Now he knew who the blonde got his looks from. The face of the woman held the same beauty that his boyfriend possessed.

Now Leon was curious about Cloud's father though. Because there wasn't a single picture of the man there.

"WOOF! WOOF!"

Leon sighed.

When he turned around, he saw that Vincent was barking at him from the couch. Leon just shook his head. He was surprised of the effect that Cloud had on people, even animals.

"What do you want from me dog?" Leon narrowed his eyes at Vincent. He felt crazy, talking to animals like they could understand.

"WOOF! WOOF!" Vincent barked at him again.("I want you to get out of this house!")

Leon raised an eyebrow at the dog and let out a tense breath. He had a crazy idea, and wasn't really sure if it would work, or really why he wanted to try it, but he walked to the couch. Vincent's bark grew more frantic, growling and glaring heatedly at the brunette when he sat down. Leon was anxious, almost afraid the dog would try to bite his leg off, however he knew that Vincent wouldn't dare. Not unless he wanted a firm scolding from Cloud again.

"Listen." Leon said seriously, "I don't know what's wrong with you, but I want you to know that Cloud and I are dating now. I…. I love him. So I wouldn't dare to hurt him. Trust me and leave him to me. I'll promise I'll be gentle with him."

For a moment, Leon thought he had gotten through to the dog (did insanity come with loving the most adorable person in the world?) when he bowed his head to mope. Then the dog started to whine and sniffle.

What the-? Was Vincent actually crying? Dogs could cry? And it wasn't just waterworks; it was a frigging flashflood! Suddenly, as though crying, whining and sniffling weren't enough, the dog also began to bark loudly at him.

"WOOOOOOOFF! WOOF! WOOF!". ("You stupid human! Cloud belongs to me! He's my master, mine! He doesn't belong to you!")

Finally, the ruckus alerted the blond that in the living room was a very unhappy dog. From the corner of his eye, Leon saw Cloud shaking his head as he walked out of the kitchen and towards them, a cup of coffee in his hand.

"Vincent."

The dog whined, but had mostly settled down. At least, it was no longer barking and growling like a wild wolf. Seriously, if Vincent wanted to live longer, he really should start behaving.

Cloud put the coffee on top of the table, giving Leon another apologetic smile before he turn to his pet, crouching in front of him. "Vincent dear…" he rubbed the dog's head gently and lovingly.

Leon cringed when he almost swore that Vincent gave him a smug look.

"Vincent, stop treating Leon like he's a bad guy, okay?" Cloud told his pet gently, while putting a pout on his face. "He's my boyfriend. And he's a veeeeeeeerrrrrrry nice guy. More than you think. And I love him."

Leon's heart began to beat fast inside his chest when Cloud turn to look at him with a smile when he finished his statement.

"And I love you too Vincent." Cloud ruffled the dog's fur. "That's why I want you two become friends."

Vincent immediately growl at Leon.

Cloud sighed. "If you don't want to be friends with Leon, then fine. But at least treat him nicely?"

Vincent tried to look away when he saw his master gave him a kicked puppy look, but Cloud forced Vincent to looked at him again. Leon watched, amused, after a few minutes Vincent finally give in and licked Cloud's face.

Cloud laughed, "Good boy." He patted Vincent's head. "Now, can you be a good boy and leave both of us alone?"

Vincent hesitated.

"If something happens, I promise I'll call you."

Only after Cloud said that did Vincent finally leave the living room. Leon wondered if talking to dogs was a skill that only people as adorable as Cloud could get…. Nah. Cloud was already the most adorable person on Earth, so it wouldn't be right if other people could do it too.

Cloud slid into the spot beside him, giving him a dazzling smile. "There, everything's gotten taken care of."

"Thanks." Leon nodded and sipped his coffee. Ah. Warm.

Leon turned his head to the pictures again, staring at one in particular that had captivated him so much before. "You look a lot like your mother."

"Of course." Cloud giggle, "I'm her son after all."

Leon breathed out a sigh, trying to hide the smile that threatened to form on his lips. He then looked at the pictures again before he looked at Cloud, "There's no pictures of your father?"

In that instant, the happy expression melted into something upset, and Leon felt something painful tug at his heart. Some sense of loneliness clouded the blonde's eyes the brunette nearly jumped at the chance to try and correct what he did. But… what had he done?

"Clo…"

"I don't have his picture, because I never met him in the first place."

Leon went still. Eyes gazing at a Cloud who didn't look back at him. Did he just hear right?

As if sensing he was being stared at, Cloud then looked at him. A small smile graced that beautiful face, but it wasn't the smile that Leon had seen before the topic had been brought up. This one was something that he never had thought of he would see from Cloud.

Cloud looked so sad.

"My father left me and my mother when I was still a baby. That's why I never met him, and… mother didn't seem to have a picture of him either." Cloud chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head. Leon had a feeling that Cloud was smiling so the brunette wouldn't worried about the him. But it was futile. Leon could clearly see that the smile didn't reach his eyes, or even dimple his cheeks.

He hated seeing Cloud like that.

Almost hesitantly, Leon grabbed a hold of Cloud's hand, making the blonde to look up at him. Leon gulped at the curious look, probably trying to read the brunette and figure out what he wanted to say. To be honest, he didn't know what he wanted to say either. He'd never been good at comforting people. But anything would be fine as long as he could comfort Cloud even if it was just a little bit.

"You know…" Leon began, adverting his eyes to somewhere low on the ground. "You didn't have to smile if you didn't feel like it. Just… let it all out."

Back when he'd been eight, Leon faintly remembered how his father had said the exact same thing when his mother had died. He remembered how he'd tried so hard to hold back his tears at the funeral. He'd tried to be strong, but his father had seemed to know exactly how he was feeling, and had eased it with those simple words. He'd cried hard for his mother for an hour in his father's arms.

That was the last time Leon had cried and he hadn't ever been able to smile since then.

Leon was kind of expecting Cloud to cry, that's why after a few moments, blue eyes staring into grey ones, he was a bit surprised to find Cloud smiling, a genuine one this time. Leon was confused. He kept staring at Cloud even when the blonde leaned down to rest his forehead against Leon's shoulder. "Thank you so much Leon."

Leon frowned. For what?

As if able to read his mind, the blonde look up at him. "For cheering me up. I feel a whole lot better now." Cloud giggled, leaning back against the couch before turned his head to him. "Do you know why I always smile?"

Leon shook his head at the question. At school, he often saw Cloud smiling. But he just thought that was just the way Cloud was.

"Well, that's because I'm very happy. I think I'm a very lucky person you know." Cloud chuckled, "I have things that can make me very happy. I have Mom, Vincent, Zack, Aerith, Yuffie, Sora, Riku, Axel, Roxas, and…" Cloud blushed a bit. "…a while ago, I always figured that just watching you from afar while keeping my feelings to myself was more than enough. But now that you actually like me back… it makes me so happy, Leon."

Cloud was blushing, and Leon had a feeling that his own face held the same color as Cloud's. But how could he not, when the one he loved in this world was saying things so sweet like that?

"What about you Leon?"

Leon blinked at the question. He turned to Cloud, "Huh?"

The blonde tilted his head, and Leon wondered whether the blonde knew how cute he looked when he did such a gesture of curiosity or teasing.

"I rarely see you smile…" Cloud was frowning a bit now as he moved his body to fully face Leon. "Why's that?"

Leon frowned. Why he rarely smiled? To be honest, he didn't know why either. There was never really anything that had made him happy enough to smile. But now he had Cloud, and every other moment made him want to burst into a fit of love-struck laughter and smiles. Everything Cloud did was captivating and adorable, everything he did made him feel so warm, and so content. "I'm… not sure…" Leon rubbed the back of his neck, "Maybe because there's nothing that can really make me smile."

"How about me?"

Leon nearly choked on air. He looked at Cloud sharply with a very faint blush on his cheeks. "…What?"

Cloud himself was blushing (again), as he repeated the question again, "How about me? Do you think… I can make you smile?"

Leon's face deepened in color a bit at the very straightforward question, and he looked away, suddenly finding it hard to meet Cloud's eyes, especially when he was leaning so close to him that their shoulders brushed. "I don't know…" he trailed off, somehow confused on how to answer that question. But when he looked at Cloud from the corner of his eyes, noticing the hopeful on that beautiful face, he couldn't help but give in. "Maybe…"

Almost immediately, Cloud smiled widely. Leon couldn't help but be amused when Cloud spoke with a very determined look, "Alright! I'll promise I'll make Squall Leonhart smile. I'll show everyone that Squall Leonhart actually looks even more charming when he smile!"

The corner of his lips rose a bit while he sighed in amusement.

He couldn't wait for the day that day actually happened.

* * *

><p>The rest of the afternoon went fine, Leon enjoyed the conversation that was shared between him and Cloud. Except maybe the point in time when Vincent suddenly barged into the living room and decided to join them by sitting on Cloud's lap while exchanging glares with Leon.<p>

Later into the evening, Leon started to decide that it was time for him to get home. Cloud accompanied him to the front door, Vincent happily remained in the living room. Leon slid on his shoes before stepping out of the house, Cloud trailing behind him.

Leon needed to go home, but deep inside, he knew that he didn't want to. He felt lonely, sad, worried, and uncertain to just leave Cloud after everything that had happened earlier today. Even though he knew tomorrow he'd see Cloud again, he still wanted to stay here with the blonde. It was almost frightening how strong his feelings were for Cloud.

"So… I guess this is where I say goodbye." Leon said offhandedly, but he was running his hand through his hair, a sign he was horrifically nervous.

"Hmm… I guess so." Cloud threw a hand to his arm. Leon felt how his heart beat faster when he noticed the hint of sadness in Cloud's tone. Maybe he was wrong, but…. Maybe, Cloud was actually feeling the same way he was.

But neither made to move, Leon was still rooted to where he was, making no signs that he was to leave. And Cloud was just standing by the door, unmoving as well. Leon wasn't too sure why he couldn't just bring himself to turn away. It felt like something was about to happen, and if he turned away, he would never know or experience what should have happened. And that feeling was strong enough to keep him there.

But still, nothing happened. And if Leon didn't make the move, they'd both be here for forever.

"Well, I'll go-"

He never got to finish his sentence.

Before he could register what was happening, he felt his leg stumbling back a bit when a pair of arms wrapped around him roughly. He was about to ask what's wrong when a pair of blue eyes looked up at him, drowning him. Leon's heart skipped a beat when he noticed the heavy blush on Cloud's face, and his eyes widen when he saw his boyfriend closed his eyes, gently yet almost hesitantly.

Leon couldn't think straight. His head went fuzzy. Was this really happening?

Leon knew that this was really happening, that this was actually real from the way Cloud's hand clung to the back of his uniform and feeling Cloud's breath against his face.

Leon mentally screamed in delight, but he ignored that part of him and just give in to the atmosphere. He started to lean in, his face unbearably close and starting to swim out of focus. He could feel how their breath tickled each other when they began to lean in more. Leon was almost tempted not to close his eyes at the very endearing look on Cloud's face. But normally people close their eyes when they kiss, right? He better follow the rules then.

Leon's lips were barely a hair width's away with Cloud's, their lips almost connected any second now…

But a sudden loud bark sounded from inside, startling both of them who immediately broke the close proximity. Both of them were blushing heavily, somehow unable to meet each other eyes after what had happened.

"WOOF! WOOF!"

Leon felt like crying and screaming and shouting at the same time. His lips had actually almost touched Cloud's for God sake! And yet this dog had to ruin this about to be blissful moment!

For the first time after a long time, Leon actually felt like crying.

"Geez… V-Vincent…" Cloud crouched in front of his pet, patting the black' dog's head, a blush still evident on his face, "I thought I told you to stay in the living room…"

Leon saw Vincent nuzzling Cloud's hand before glaring at him. And Leon returned it with his famous death glares, increasing it ten folds more terrifying that it actually scared the dog a bit.

"Leon…" the soft call of his name made him looked up at Cloud. The shy look and the blush on Cloud's face reminded him what happened earlier, and suddenly, Leon almost felt shy to look at Cloud.

"I-I'm sorry… about earlier…" Cloud was playing with the hem of his shirt again, a sign that the blonde was nervous.

"It's fine…" he sighed, trying to act as if nothing bothered him. But he couldn't hide the feeling of disappointment in his chest. "I… I think I'll go home now."

Just when he was about to take a step, he felt a tug on his hand, forcing him to stop moving. And when he turned to looked at Cloud, he never expected to feel a warm pair of lips against his right cheek.

Leon's heart skipped a beat again, his eyes went wide at the warm feelings that made its way inside his body. Leon's mind went blank. He just enjoyed the feeling of Cloud's lips on his skin and let a whirlwind of emotion bleed into his heart that made him melt.

And then it was over.

Cloud backed away, and Leon was mesmerized how red Cloud's face was when the boy's eyes met his before looking somewhere else. Leon knew that he was also blushing, especially when Cloud went to wrap his arms around his chest, holding tightly and whispered, "I love you Leon…"

Soon, those arms were gone from Leon and he looked down at Cloud who was smiling very gently at him. His boyfriend threw him a soft 'I'll see you tomorrow' and headed inside his house with Vincent who looked like he was about to rip out his fur in horror. Leon stood still for a moment, only when the sound of the door closing did he stumble away of Cloud's house.

Leon pressed a hand to his cheek as he began to walk home.

Cloud had kissed him.

Cloud had kissed him.

Cloud had kissed him on the cheek.

"YEAH!" Leon suddenly cheered, scaring a man who was passing him. When he glared, the man immediately ran away.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm his excitement. Though he couldn't help but smile maniacally in the inside as he began to walk again.

Leon couldn't believe himself right now. Was he, Squall 'Ice Prince' Leonhart, humming?

Man, he surely would have nice dreams tonight.

* * *

><p>So, what do you think of this chapter? Lol, I actually had fun writing this one^^ though all of you must be thinking that it was weird for Vincent for somehow able to understand what people saying. But hey! This is fan<strong>fiction<strong>! XD So just have fun! Lol.

As usual, reviews are very much loved and advices or SOFT critic will be welcomed^^

ooOO Teaser for Chapter 4 OOoo

In which Cloud met Leon's father, Leon got pissed because of Sephiroth's affection toward Cloud, and Cloud getting bolder to give Leon kisses.


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